Discussion Questions

• Where do you tend to “count your fighting men”? In other words, what numbers, achievements, or forms of security (money, success, reputation, influence) do you rely on instead of trusting God?
• What is the difference between being “conscience-stricken” and “consequence-stricken”? How can we tell whether our repentance is truly about the sin itself rather than just the consequences we are facing?
• The passage reveals God as both holy and compassionate. Why is it important not to reduce God to only one of these attributes, and how might our view of God shape the way we treat and relate to others?

• What do you want people to say about you at your funeral?

• How do the decisions you make in life with your time, money and energy point beyond you to make much of King Jesus?

• What warning does the description of “worthless men” give us about resisting God’s rule and authority in our lives?
• The new covenant promises of God to you are “ordered in all things and secure” in Christ. Which promises do you most often cling to? Which promises are difficult to believe?

Discussion Questions

• Where do you feel the tension between mercy and justice in your life right now?
• Where are you quick to demand strict justice for others, yet hope for grace or “gentle justice” for yourself or those you love?
• How does seeing yourself as a “welcomed rebel” shape the way you approach God when you fail?

Think about someone who has betrayed you and answer these questions.

• Was your response to run from others or move toward a good friend?
• Were you questioning God or submitting to his loving hand?
• Was your response to pray or to get revenge?
• Did you act wisely or become passive?

Discussion Questions

• Where might your anger at sin stop short of action, allowing silence to become complicity?
• Tamar is the only one who names the evil in this passage. What does that reveal about courage?
• What does the cross reveal about how seriously God takes injustice, and how is Jesus fundamentally different from every man in this chapter?